Why do most people here think that AS and autism

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I'm a believer that AS is a form of Nonverbal Learning Disorder, not autism. The symptoms for NVLD are identical to those of AS, but AS has more symptoms, thus making it a more severe form of what is now called "NVLD." Whatever the classification, whether it be a form of NVLD or HFA, the DSM criteria for AS need to be drastically revised. Currently, the syndrome is very poorly explained, in terms of the DSM.
-OddDuckNash99-

If AS is so unlike autism, what about people like me, who are practically standing with one foot in each category? I didn't have a speech delay; but with very odd, formal speech as a child I barely meet the criteria for classic autism... I also have some delays in self-care skills, plus some kind of ADHD-like thing that involves getting stuck standing in the middle of the room because I can't figure out what to do next. I'm both hypersensitive and hyposensitive--sometimes on different sensations from the same sensory input channel. I'm more indifferent to other people than intimidated or confused... When it comes to stereotypes, I match some for Asperger's, some for classic autism.

Asperger's fits me best because my verbal skills are higher than the others; but really, I don't see that much fundamental difference between me and the guy down the street who didn't speak for a while and got labeled with classic autism instead. Said guy down the street is often more independent and capable, to tell the truth; I'm kind of delayed on a lot of things. I'll get there eventually, though.

It is confusing, I am even being told by different sources that you could still have some sort of speech delay and have AS, but to what degree? And in the end, what difference does it make? I have probably posted this before but I remember Temple Grandin saying in one of her lectures that AS and HFA are really the same in the end. But who really knows. One professional could say that you could have some speech delay with AS and another could say no.

Loborojo in order to understand you have to realise that the distinction is arbitrary. In other words some say there has to be a distinction so why not make it there. It has historical reasons. Asperger's did his body of work on the other side of the world to Kanner.

The cut off higher function to Low is 70 IQ. This was something Henry Goddard pulled out of thing are in the beginning of the 20th century and has nothing to do with autism.

You got it the wrong way round NVLD is a subset of Asperger's. There only reason for the distinction was NVLD was 'discovered' by neurophysiologists, where as previously pretty much everything was done from a behavioural stance. NVLD doesn't include all of people with Asperger's but some of them. And no it isn't necessarily accurate to say that NVLD is a milder form of Aspergers. Some problems in NVLD may have great consequences in some cases, and vice versa.

All evidence points toward AS and other conditions being part of autism, especially the genetic evidence.

You can say that terms like Asperger's, NVLD, and PDD-NOS(when linked to autism rather than another PDD) are pretty arbitrary 'cookie cutter' diagnosis and don't offer more then Autistic Spectrum Disorder, when you would need more explanation anyway to describe an individual with ASD. That is the view of some expert currently.[/quote]

your dead right

They are the same. Different expressions of the same genetic attributes.
The error is in name assosciations. In my office, I call the two manifestations only for the interests of those ill versed in my superior, though infantile, identification and classification system applying mathematical value to character patterns.

You can be "low-functioning" by some definitions of the term and have Asperger's; you just can't have a low IQ. By low-functioning, I mean "unable to live independently"... but there are people who can't do that and yet are labeled high functioning... and there are people who need 24/7 care and are called high functioning at times because their IQs are high... Functioning labels are really weak terms; they mean different things depending on what you are talking about; and they've lost most of their meaning to me.

There's only actually one official scale for labeling functioning level, and it's a numerical 1-100 scale, not high/medium/low.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_Ass ... unctioning

The GAF score also has one other benefit: It changes depending on your situation and how well you're coping with it. From what I can tell, I could have been at times rated at anything from 20 to 80, with an average around 50. An NT without a mental illness will score in the 80-90 range, usually. The one drawback to the scale is that it includes social functioning, and without any "meaningful personal relationships", you can't score higher than 60. There should be an autism-specific scale that takes into account things like introversion and prejudice, but nobody's made one yet, or if they have, it hasn't been accepted.